Black Skin

When I look in the mirror all I see is Black Skin

Its part of my being, who I am

Sometimes I don’t see the beauty in the darkness

Some mock and point out the dense ness of my pigmentation

For a while my skin was a curse

An excuse to be made fun of and discriminated against 

A change for them to disregard my mind and focus on my melanin 

They always asked me if I enjoyed being that dark

That when I played hide-and-seek could they find me in the dark

I hated my skin

It was the source of my despondency

I couldn’t see the beauty in my blackness

Couldn't find love within the twilight of my shadow

Took me awhile to ask myself why

Why did they criticize

Why did they care so much about weather or not I could be seen at night

Why was my coloring much more important than my thirst of knowledge or my ambition

They never could give me a straight answer

Nothing they said made sense and yet they continued to drag me down

And dunk my head in a bath full of lies and insecurities

I scared them

My mind scared them

They didn’t want me to dream, or hope

They'd rather I spent my time obsessing over how my skin sometimes blended in with the night

Then why Shakespeare wrote such beautiful poetry

They wanted my mind to critique the lack of light in my skin instead of the lack of equality

They didn’t want me to be like them, to think like they do

They didn’t want me to soar above their meager attempts to understand the complexity of Galileo

They’d rather I sit silently embarrassed by my skin

Shamed and afraid to try and step out of the box that had been labbled, Black

But I saw through their lies and I realized I was more than a color

I wasn’t just a box to check whenever I fill out an application 

I am more than my skin and I have a voice 

I will never allow them to make me doubt the depth of my understanding 

Never again will they make me hate my Black Skin

Because it is apart of my story and my complexity 

Its a story I tell proudly and will continue to write till my head began to bleed

I am a Dark my Skin is Black and I hold stars within my pores 

I will continue to shine 

I will continue to rise and you will notice me 

For I am a night sky with shooting stars